


Easy Come, Easy Go (But Baby, Please Don't Leave)

by sunshineflying



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-18
Updated: 2015-09-18
Packaged: 2018-04-21 09:36:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4824002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineflying/pseuds/sunshineflying
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall and Harry work in a coffee shop together, and Niall's as dependable as they come. Harry always calls him to help out, even if maybe there's reason behind that aside from Niall's dedication to the shop. Balancing his work life and his home life, Niall's not sure if they ever wants them to mix - until one day he doesn't have a choice.</p><p>Featuring cheery barista Harry, single dad Niall, loyal best friend and flatmate Louis, and side mentions of the rest.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Easy Come, Easy Go (But Baby, Please Don't Leave)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [niallcomein (humanlikeyou)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/humanlikeyou/gifts).



> To my prompter --
> 
> I hope you enjoy this! I loved the coffee shop prompt and I wanted to make something special and unique for you, so I took your note to add other characters and made it into a kidfic. I hope you like it! I had a lot of fun writing this for you :)
> 
> Thanks also to Jen, for reading this through for me. You are the most loyal beta of all, and I appreciate it so much!

_hey niall – want to come in and work tonight? H. x_

Niall sighs down at his phone and shakes his head. Sometimes he wonders if Harry even bothers calling anyone else anymore.

It’s frustrating, how common an occurrence it is for people to back out of their shifts at the coffee shop, but Niall doesn’t mind so much when it’s Harry he gets to work with. Harry’s the fun one, the fit one, and he’s much easier to get along with than anyone else at the shop.

_ya sure. be there soon_

Niall doesn’t mind working in a coffee shop, not like some people do, because this one’s a local one, not some big corporation like Starbucks. He gets fair wages, free drinks, and the management trusts him. Harry, too.

“Louis!” Niall calls down the hallway. He wanders out to find him, where he’s sat on the floor with a little baby boy, playing with a plastic truck. “D’you mind watching Ciaran for me tonight?”

“Ugh, you got called into work again?” Louis grumbles. He twists around to lie on his stomach in front of the squirming baby in front of him and smiles at him as he says, “Good thing Ciaran and I get along so well, huh? You have a hard working daddy, little buddy.”

“You’re a lifesaver,” Niall says. “It’s just --,”

“Harry called you in again, I _know_ ,” Louis says. “He always does. It’s fine.” He smiles up at Niall and insists, “I love watching him for you. He’s the sweetest kid around. Go work hard for him, alright? Meanwhile I’ll stay here with him being the best. Roommate. Ever.”

“You are. I owe you one,” Niall says, rushed. “Thanks Lou!”

“Go on, get ready for work and get out of our hair!” Louis urges, laughing as Ciaran lets out a pleased squeal. “We’re going to have a proper lads night without you!”

“Oh god,” Niall says, rolling his eyes. But Louis isn’t one to be messed with, so he does as he says.

Once he’s gone down the hallway to his room, Niall shoves on some khaki’s and his old black and white Nike’s that are stained with coffee, and then heads to his closet. He’s got more black polos than he’d like to admit, but that’s the life he’s taken on. It gets him through uni and he likes hanging out with Harry, so he figures it’s alright.

Harry had never told him a time – never does, really – so Niall just plans to get there as soon as he can. On his way out the door he scoops Ciaran up in his arms and gives him a big kiss on the forehead. “Love you, buddy. I’ll be home soon, I promise,” he says against his son’s head. “Be good for Louis.”

“He’s always good for me,” Louis says with a grin, reaching out for Ciaran once Niall’s said his goodbye.

“Thanks again,” Niall says.

“Say that one more time and I’ll kick your arse!”

Niall laughs and shakes his head. He leans in to give Ciaran one last kiss before he rushes out the door. In no time he’s on the tube and arriving to the coffee shop as quickly as he can.

Mere seconds after the bell rings above his head signaling his arrival, Niall’s wrapped up in a big hug by Harry, even though there’s four customers huddled around a table over in the corner. “Niall!” Harry beams. “Thank you so much for coming in.”

“Anytime, you know that,” Niall replies casually.

He ducks his head and scratches at the back of his neck as Harry steps away, breaking the embrace. Niall’s flushed pink in the apples of his cheeks, blushing because of bloody course that’s what happens when Harry touches him.

See, Niall’s known for a while now that he’s got a _thing_ for Harry. Harry is tall and slender and his tight jeans leave absolutely nothing to the imagination. He’s handsome, with his dimples and sparkling green eyes, and Niall never thought he’d find a ponytail on a man so attractive but he _does_ , especially when it’s wrapped up neatly in a tiny bun atop Harry’s head.

He’s been gone for Harry since he started at the shop, and his little crush has only gotten worse since then. It doesn’t help any that Niall is actually good at what he does, so Harry’s always calling him instead of others when they’re short of help.

“Looks busy,” Niall laughs as he walks behind the partition.

He pushes through the swinging door and into the back room, Harry trailing close behind. “I just didn’t want to work alone,” Harry says. “And technically, Zayn’s supposed to be here but he ducked out. Again.”

“Of fucking course he did,” Niall grumbles. Zayn’s been begging off more than he’s been working lately, and Niall wonders why they’ve even kept him around. It’s probably the latte art, but what good is that skill if he never puts it to work?

“It’s alright,” Harry confesses. “I’d rather work with you.”

Niall laughs, his eyes bright and dancing with happiness as he pulls on his blue apron to match Harry’s. “Yeah, because I show up,” he jokes.

Harry looks affronted for a moment before he says, “I thought we were friends!”

Niall laughs again and pats Harry on the shoulder. “Of course we are, Hazza. We’re friends and I’m here to close with you, so come on. Let’s have at it.”

As he walks towards the door, Harry says, “But wait! Nobody’s out there. We don’t have to go out there, do we?” They love hiding in the back when they haven’t got customers, even Harry, who loves chatting with customers.

“I demand coffee,” Niall says, pushing Harry toward the door.

Harry’s laughter is bright and a bit loud as they walk back into the main area of the coffee shop, but it’s deserted, as it always is around dinnertime on a Tuesday night.

“Thanks for coming in,” Harry says, leaning against a countertop as he watches Niall.

Niall tamps down the espresso grinds and puts the portafilter in the machine, and then presses a button so the espresso shots will drain through and into a cup. He puts some milk on the steaming wand and then looks over at Harry. “No problem. I’m always game for some extra cash,” Niall says. He smiles, and then finishes off his latte, pouring the steamed milk over the espresso shots.

“And you love working with me,” Harry adds.

“Yeah,” Niall nods. “I suppose there’s that, too.”

Harry watches as Niall cleans up his mess, tapping the wet espresso grounds into the trash and rinsing out his steaming pitcher. It’s easy work for him, so natural from working at the coffee shop for ages. It’s not his only job, but it’s the one Niall likes the most. He puts a lid on his cup of coffee and leans against the counter facing Harry.

“Did I pull you away from anything important?” Harry wonders.

Niall hesitates.

Naturally, he thinks his own son is important. Ciaran is the sun and the moon to him, ever since his mum decided she wasn’t actually fit to be a mum and gave him full custody just weeks after he was born. Now he’s six months old and Niall’s still not sure he knows what he’s doing, but that’s what he’s got his best friend Louis for, anyhow.

“Just a night in,” he says, because it’s not exactly a lie, even though it’s not the total truth.

Niall’s never sure whether he wants to open up about his son. Harry’s great, but Niall feels a bit foolish, being twenty-two and a father to a kid who doesn’t have a mum who wants to be around. He feels juvenile for it all. Besides, he likes the separation of home and work, and he’s nervous about introducing Ciaran to new people. He doesn’t want Ciaran to grow up worrying about whether more people are going to leave him the way his mother did, so it’s easier to shelter him from everyone.

But it’s not that he doesn’t trust Harry. He does. He _definitely_ does. Harry’s sweet and charming and every time someone brings in a child he’s got the bowl of lollies behind the counter ready to offer one to them, or to make them a hot cocoa with sprinkles or something just as fun. If Niall could trust anyone around Ciaran, it would be Harry, but it’s the principle of it all. If he brings his son around then other staff will want to meet him too, and it’s just – it’s a lot. It’s more than Niall is ready for.

“Well, it’s fun here with me anyway,” Harry grins.

A customer walks in, a student with a big bag full of homework to do, and Niall hopes this means they’ll at least have _something_ to do for the next few hours, other than cleaning. It looks rather spotless already, which means an easy close.

And he’s right.

Once the student leaves, they’re ready to go, except Harry’s just made them each some hot cocoa and they sit up on the countertops of the store in the dim lights, eating stale cookies that they’d have otherwise tossed in the bin because they’re old, and sipping their cocoa. “So, d’you live alone, then?” Harry wonders.

“Nah, I got a flat with me mate from uni, Louis,” Niall explains.

“You’re in uni?” Harry asks with interest.

Niall laughs and shakes his head. “I was, but I’m not anymore. Life happens, you know? But Louis dropped out too, it wasn’t for him, so now we just work and hang out at the flat and stuff,” Niall explains.

“Yeah, uni isn’t always the best for some people,” Harry agrees. “My sister did it but I’ve still got no idea what I want to do. I might just take this place over one day.”

Niall nods and takes another bite of his cookie.

“This place is nice when it’s quiet,” Niall comments. “Though I could probably fall asleep here.”

Harry chuckles and says, “Sleepover at the café.”

“Ugh, no thanks,” Niall says, pulling his face into a look of disgust.

They don’t move until nearly an hour after they’re supposed to, and that’s when they part ways to go home. They’re scheduled to work together the following night – it’s actually on purpose this time, not Niall subbing in for someone – and he finds himself looking forward to it immensely.

The next night is a little busier, with more uni students coming in to work on their assignments, but it’s still quiet which means Harry and Niall have more time to mess about and have fun at work. In the back, as Harry’s sweeping up, Niall’s washing the dishes and he laughs as he tosses some foam at Harry. It catches him square in the forehead and he stands up, confused. “What’d you do?” he asks.

His hand pops up to dab at his forehead and Niall laughs. “It’s just bubbles!” he says.

Harry waves the broom at Niall, trying to poke him in the legs or something, but Niall skitters away before the broom actually touches him. “Oi, do your work!” Niall scolds him.

They’re both laughing and Harry looks reluctant to get back to his task. Niall goes back to washing dishes though, and he’s grateful when it’s time to switch off the _open_ sign again, so they can be alone. Harry pulls out two more old pastries, one for each of them, and Niall perches himself on the countertop like usual. “You sure I’m not keeping you from anything?” Harry asks as he hands Niall another cocoa. It’s like their closing-time ritual, cocoa and pastries.

“Nah,” Niall shakes his head. He thinks about Ciaran, how he’s missed him a lot in the past couple of days, but Louis doesn’t mind watching him and he’s likely asleep, anyway. He takes a bite of his cookie and asks, “You?”

“Nope,” Harry replies. “My flatmates are night owls so they’re probably out doing gigs or at a party or something.”

“On a Wednesday night?” Niall asks incredulously.

Harry shrugs. “Why not?”

Niall wishes he had that kind of life. He’d had it briefly, back in uni, when he was fucking about and not sure what he wanted to do. But that resulted in little Ciaran and Niall’s subsequent dropping out of uni, and it doesn’t sound quite as fun in that light. It’s created a lot of work for him, though he loves Ciaran more than life itself.

Niall’s phone buzzes just as he takes another sip, and he pulls it out to see a message from Louis.

_C’s poorly. Come home fast?_

With a frown, Niall says, “I have to go.”

Harry raises an eyebrow. “Girlfriend?” Niall laughs and shakes his head. “Boyfriend?” Niall shakes his head again.

“It’s just… complicated,” Niall settles on. “I’ll see you soon though.”

Harry looks confused but nods and doesn’t ask any more questions. Niall looks more worried than Harry’s ever seen him; he doesn’t want to get in the way of Niall getting to whatever it is.

Niall really wants to be home with Ciaran, to give his son plenty of snuggles and medicine and anything else he might need, but he also _really_ doesn’t want to leave Harry. Harry’s such lovely company, with his bright smile and the way he can chat on about oddball things like the smoothie he had the other day or why he only buys bananas from one particular shop in town. They can go on about golf and have even talked about taking a trip out to a course sometime, though it’s never happened.

There’s a lot he likes about Harry, but he’s got to cut their evening short so he can go home and be a good father.

Niall sometimes wishes he’d been smarter in uni, that he’d waited to have children so he could have nights like the one before, where he can sit around chatting about anything and nothing with Harry for as late as he wants, but he loves Ciaran. Ciaran is his world. Niall feels selfish for sometimes wishing he’d waited to have him.

He frowns and heads out, moving faster to hopefully make up for the thoughts he sometimes has, about wishing he were a normal twenty-two year old. Niall makes it home later than he’d hoped but still earlier than Louis expected, apparently, because Louis greets him by saying, “That was fast.”

Niall reaches out for Ciaran on instinct, pulling him from Louis’s arms and tight against his chest. The poor guy looks wiped out, his thin, dusty brown hair damp from all the sweat. “It’s a fever and a cough, the poor lad,” Louis says softly.

The whole flat is quiet, with the lights dimmed and Louis speaking barely above a whisper. Everything is so still and peaceful and Niall knows this isn’t how most flats with guys their age would look at this hour. Niall reaches down to feel Ciaran’s forehead and he asks, “What’s the temperature?”

“Thirty-six,” Louis says, reaching out to pat Ciaran’s head gently as Niall cradles him protectively to his chest. “I called me mum, she says he doesn’t need to go to hospital unless it goes up to thirty-nine. She says to give him regular bottles and to give him a bath to try to break the fever. And that you can give him a little bit of baby paracetamol.”

Niall closes his eyes and feels a little more at ease. “Thanks for calling her,” he whispers.

Louis watches Niall with a gentle look in his eye, and he watches as Niall tries to help Ciaran get more comfortable, as he’s whimpering and whining. “Why don’t you wash him up in the sink,” Louis suggests. “I’ll get him a fresh nappy and a new BabyGro and then I’ll pop out to the shops to get him some medicine.”

Niall’s endlessly thankful to have Louis there with him. If he were alone, he’s not sure what he’d do as far as taking care of Ciaran. Bringing him out to the shops when he’s so sickly would be a nightmare, Niall’s sure. He’s never had to take care of a sick baby before and it’s terrifying, but he feels better having Louis around.

He gently washes Ciaran and tells him over and over again in a low, soothing voice that everything will be okay, that he loves him and he’s going to take care of him, and Louis does as he said he would. After the bath, Niall sits down and feeds Ciaran a bottle, and when Louis comes back, he helps Niall with the medicine.

It’s one of Niall’s least favourite things about parenting, he’s decided. He doesn’t like seeing Ciaran make a face at the medicine, the way he tries to spit it back up and the way he fusses when they try to give it to him. It’s supposed to make him better, but he doesn’t want it. Niall doesn’t like having to restrain him so Louis can put the droplets in his mouth, but he’s got to.

Niall feels exhausted by the time they’ve finished, but Ciaran’s finally relaxing and lulling off to sleep, so overall, it worked. Niall leans in to kiss his son on the forehead and then Louis says, “Will you guys be alright if I go to bed now? I’m leaving for Doncaster in the morning, so I should get some rest.”

Niall frowns. Doncaster? Of course he’d known about the trip, but the timing is awful. He’s sure that Harry will end up calling him into work soon – tomorrow, probably, because Zayn’s scheduled to work again – but he won’t be able to make it. Niall can’t take Ciaran to someone’s house to have them care for him. He’s sick, and he’ll fuss, and if he takes Ciaran to Liam and Sophia’s, which is usually his first choice, then he could get their one-year-old daughter sick, as well.

“Yeah, it’s fine,” Niall says. “Get some rest, alright? Say goodbye to us before you leave, too, would you?”

Louis smiles sadly. “Of course I will. Don’t be an idiot,” he replies.

Niall cuddles Ciaran close to his chest and kisses him atop his head. “You’ll feel better soon, C. I promise,” he whispers.

Niall falls asleep right there in the rocker with Ciaran sleeping soundly in his arms. He wakes at the crack of dawn to the sounds of Ciaran’s wails, and he carries him to his room so he can change him. It’s exhausting, being a parent, Niall thinks. He wishes he had someone to share it with, like properly share it the way parents do, but Louis is the best he’s got. There’s no romance there – though not for lack of trying – but they work better as friends and they’re okay with that.

He changes Ciaran and warms a bottle for him, hoping that he doesn’t wake Louis as he does so. Louis claims he can’t hear a thing, but Niall’s never fully believed him.

Louis wakes just as Ciaran’s dozing off again, and he gives the baby a little kiss on the forehead before he ruffles Niall’s already-mussed hair and says, “I’ll be back on Sunday night, alright? Call me if you need anything.”

“We’ll be fine,” Niall replies, but four days with a sick baby and no Louis means he might at least text once or twice. Not that he wants to, for pride and all, but for Ciaran’s sake he would.

Louis waves and walks out the door, and suddenly the flat is quiet again.

Niall stares down at the little baby in his arms, the six month old son he never thought he’d have, at least at his current age. He wonders how they would have gotten to this point without Louis and Liam and Sophia to help him through, whether they would’ve been okay, would’ve even had a roof over their heads.

Stuck in his thoughts, Niall drifts off into a fitful sleep, Ciaran still resting against his chest. When he wakes, it’s because of his phone, rather than Ciaran.

“Hello?” he answers groggily, without even checking to see who it was.

“Hiya.”

It’s Harry, Niall realizes. His stomach drops.

“Hey Harry, what’s up?” Niall asks, putting a dummy in Ciaran’s mouth to help him fall back to sleep after being startled awake by the ringer on Niall’s phone. Thankfully, he stays quiet.

“Zayn begged out again. D’you think you could come in for a longer shift today? Like noon or one until close?” he asks.

“Um,” Niall says. He frowns. “I… can’t.”

That answer seems to surprise Harry, because he sounds taken aback as he says, “Oh. You… is everything alright?”

Niall hates lying, but he’s not ready to share Ciaran with the whole world yet. It doesn’t feel like the right time. So, he takes a deep breath and says, “I’m… not well, that’s all. Think I caught something.”

“Oh,” comes Harry’s reply again. He’s quiet, and it’s awkward, and Niall takes a deep breath. “Well, feel better then. If you need anything, just ring me.”

“O-okay,” Niall agrees, still feeling awkward for the lying. “Will do. Thanks.”

He coughs once for good measure, and then rings off. When he looks down at Ciaran, he smiles. There with his big, bright blue eyes is Ciaran, watching him intently. “How are you feeling, buddy?” Niall asks, pressing his hand gently to his forehead.

It still feels warm, so he grabs the ear thermometer Louis had invested in for them and tests it out, to see if he’s gotten worse. Thankfully, the temperature is already down to thirty-five. “You’re a strong one,” Niall says proudly, smiling at him. “How about we have some more paracetamol and watch some football? What do you say?”

Ciaran just tips his head to the side and his dummy slips out of his mouth, and suddenly Niall remembers why he’d wanted to keep his son, even when his mum didn’t. He loves that look on his face, and he loves the tender moments they can share, just the two of them.

He decides, while they’re up and getting some medicine, that another bath might do Ciaran some good, along with a fresh outfit. He puts him in a cute outfit of navy bottoms and a football jersey, and Niall decides to put on his own jersey as well. Then he manages to get Ciaran to take the medicine a little easier than he could last night, and it feels like it’ll be better, and that Ciaran is on the mend.

They cuddle up on the sofa with a game of football on the screen, and Niall helps feed Ciaran some little bits of cereal so he can get some food in his belly.

It’s comfortable and calm, and Niall feels like he’s a rather okay father, all things considered.

He finds himself thinking back to the coffee shop, though, about how Harry had taken him under his wing from the very start. He’d taught him everything he knew, made sure he was promoted up to management almost instantly, and Niall felt like he had a place there. Harry made him feel like he was actually contributing something, even if customers treated him like shit because he was, after all, only a barista.

Just as he thinks that he and Ciaran are about to doze off on another nap, there’s a knock at the door.

Confused, Niall tucks Ciaran against his chest and walks over to the door, wondering if maybe Louis has sent someone over to check up on them. It’s something he’d do, so it wouldn’t surprise him.

But it’s actually Harry, and Niall feels like he could sink into the floor right there.

Harry’s holding a big bowl of soup, it looks like, and he’s smiling and about to say hello when he notices Ciaran in Niall’s arms. His whole expression falters and he asks, clearly confused, “A baby?”

Niall feels the panic setting in, the way he doesn’t like that look on Harry’s face, the way he can’t read what it means, and the way his two worlds are colliding before he was ready. He wants to protect Ciaran, and to keep him his safe little secret because he doesn’t want some _reputation_ and he certainly doesn’t want _pity_. He’s rooted to the spot and he doesn’t know what to say, and Harry’s just staring because it’s not like he _knew_.

It’s incredibly awkward, to say the least.

“He looks just like you,” Harry observes, staring at little Ciaran like he’s a beautiful gem. “Is… is he your son?”

Shell-shocked, Niall just nods. He doesn’t know what else to do. “Why didn’t you tell me you and Louis had kids?” Harry asks softly.

He’s still standing in the hallway and Niall’s still blocking the doorway, and it takes a moment for him to realize he should move out of the way and let Harry in like a proper person would do. “We… don’t. Not Louis, anyway. Just me,” Niall explains lamely. “He’s… he’s just mine.” Niall pulls Ciaran a little closer to his chest as he says it, his protective instincts kicking in even though he _knows_ he can trust Harry.

“Oh.”

Harry looks very confused at this point, and Niall steps aside to let Harry in. Harry sets the bowl of soup on the counter and says, “I… I thought you said you were sick, so I brought you this.”

Niall feels awful, having lied to Harry, now that he knows he took time out of his day to come try to cheer him up. “It… well, Ciaran’s the poorly one, not me, but… thanks,” Niall says softly.

He feels awkward and like he’s made Harry go out of his way for nothing, and Harry looks at the little baby and asks, “Ciaran? That’s a lovely name. Irish, innit?”

“Yeah,” Niall nods. “He’s had a fever since last night. It’s why I had to come home. And Louis has gone to Doncaster for the weekend, so…” he sighs and tries to relax. “Usually I just bring him over to me mate Liam’s house, but I didn’t want him to get their daughter sick, and I’ve been away a lot with work and stuff this week, so… I wanted to spend the day with him.”

Harry looks sad. “I’m sorry I’ve called you in so much,” he offers. “I didn’t know.”

“No, don’t apologize,” Niall insists, already feeling dumb that he’d brought up work. “It’s not… I mean, you know I work two jobs. So this is like… just between the two it’s been a lot, okay? And like… working with you is nice. I like it.”

Harry sits down at the kitchen table, and Niall hates how close to the door he is, how easy it would be for Harry to run and never look back. Granted, Harry loves children and that’s no secret, but it’s the lying part of it all, the deception, that has Niall feeling doubtful that anything will be okay after this.

“Why have you kept him a secret?” Harry asks softly.

Niall pats Ciaran’s bum and tries to get him to nod off to sleep again as he says, “I just… I didn’t want special treatment. And like, his mum’s not in the picture, so…” he trails off. “I’m trying to protect him. I don’t want anything to go wrong for him. He’s got me and Louis and Liam and Sophia and it’s good. We’re okay.”

Harry looks hurt. “I _love_ babies,” he says. “I wouldn’t treat you differently.”

“I know,” Niall agrees. “I know that. But it was like… once I started to work with you and get to know you it was like… it was great. Really great. I knew a while ago that I had feelings for you. But I’ve heard so many stories about how once people tell someone they’ve got a kid, everything changes. And like… I _know_ you love kids but plenty of people love kids but aren’t ready for their own. I didn’t want that to be a factor, and… this all sounds like total shit now.”

Harry’s got a deep frown on his face and he stands up, and Niall’s so, so worried that he’s about to bolt and never look back, that work is going to be awkward now, if they ever end up scheduled together again. But then Harry’s walking closer to him and he says, “I think we’ve got to go on a few dates, then.”

Niall’s eyes bug out. It was definitely not the answer he was expecting. “What?” he asks.

“Well,” Harry says simply, looking down at little Ciaran who’s watching them both, too intrigued by this new visitor to bother going back to sleep. “If you think I’d run just because of a kid, you don’t know me all that well. Which dates are good for – getting to know people, I mean.”

Again, not the answer Niall’s expecting, but it’s sweet. It makes sense. It makes his heart race because Harry’s here, right in front of Niall and Ciaran, and he’s not afraid. He’s okay with it.

Niall really doesn’t know how to handle this information.

When he finally has the courage to look up at Harry, he’s glad for it, because Harry’s got on the warmest smile Niall’s ever seen, and he’s leaning in to press a gentle kiss to his lips. It’s soft and chaste and leaves Niall desperate for more, but he doesn’t get the satisfaction. Harry’s apparently a tease, on top of all of his other wonderful characteristics.

It’s then that Harry registers what Niall and Ciaran are wearing, and he smiles fondly. “Matching footie shirts? That’s adorable,” he says.

Niall blushes and his stomach growls and Harry’s fond smile grows. “If you’d like, I can hold him whilst you eat,” Harry offers. “The soup is really good. I made it myself.”

If Harry were anyone else, Niall probably would have hesitated, but he trusts Harry. He doesn’t know why he’d blocked him out to begin with, because he should’ve known he’d be so sweet and understanding. He really does adore babies, and Niall’s known that since the start. He pushes away any last bits of fear he has and gently lays Ciaran in Harry’s arms. “He’s been on the mend today, but he hasn’t eaten lately so he might be hungry,” Niall says. “I can feed him once I’m done, he’ll probably be ready by then.”

“Can I?” Harry asks hopefully.

Niall looks back up at Harry from where he’d been watching Ciaran and he swallows hard before he nods. “Y-yeah. If you want to,” he agrees.

Harry grins, dimples and all, and replies, “I’d really like to.”

As Niall’s sitting down with the bowl of soup on the sofa next to Harry, he asks, “So what happened with the café? I sort of assumed you had to work, and that’s why you were calling.”

“No,” Harry shakes his head. “Ed’s on today, he’s just convinced I can get people to work easier than he can. I also just wanted an excuse to call you.”

Niall flushes bright pink. “Who else is there, then?” he asks.

“I gave Zayn a talking to and he’s there,” Harry says, rather proudly. “I don’t think he’ll be skipping out as much as he used to.”

“Well damn,” Niall sighs. “There goes all hopes of working with you.”

Harry laughs. “I’m getting put in charge of the schedule now,” he says. “I think the shop’s going to be mine, soon.”

Working in a coffee shop might not be everyone’s dream, but it suits Harry well, and Niall finds that he likes it a lot, too. It’s comfortable, knowing the place inside and out and having a good relationship with the other people there. Sometimes he thinks if he had enough hours, he’d leave his other job and make a proper career out of helping Harry run the place.

It’s a lot, very soon, but Harry’s keen to keep him there so that puts Niall at ease.

Once he’s done eating, Niall warms up a bottle for Ciaran and hands it to Harry, who’s incredibly eager to feed him. Niall sits down on the sofa next to them and puts his head on Harry’s shoulder, watching as Ciaran takes to this stranger easier than he’s done with nearly anyone other than Louis.

Harry’s definitely got a way with kids, and Niall quite likes it. He thinks he could settle into life like this – the baby and the café and Harry – without much worry. It feels right, and it feels like home.


End file.
